About
I am an accomplished multimedia producer and photographer with significant experience in the NGO sector (www.hughrutherford.com.au). I have extensive experience in all aspects of film production, and a high level of competence in the film-making process from shooting through to scriptwriting and editing. I was a finalist in Sydney’s ‘TROPFEST’, the largest outdoor film festival in the world with an award winning film called “Chiuso”. My work in photography and film has seen me move into the community development sector, from various roles in NGOs to working to support migrant centres and Legal Aid organizations, creating films for South Sudanese refugees and other minority groups in Sydney, Australia.
I am currently based in Kampala, Uganda, working on the final stages of a video consultancy with Catholic Relief Service in South Sudan that is due to finish at the end of January. I spent 3 weeks in South Sudan (Bor, Duk and Uror) documenting the program sectors of The Jonglei Food Security Program (CRS’s largest program in South Sudan and funded by USAID), which was launched in 2012 to tackle the joint issues of insecurity and food security in Jonglei State. Based in Bor, I worked with local staff in identifying case studies for the program sectors WASH, Livestock, Resilience, Trauma Awareness, Nutrition, Agriculture, SILC and Integration (how all the sectors are linked), along with stakeholders and government officials. Along with producing and directing 8 x 5 minute videos I also produced a series of high quality photographs for use in internal and external publications.
In 2016 I began a long association with Finn Church Aid here in Uganda working in refugee settlements in the northern Uganda documenting the construction of a disability friendly school in Adjumani district. The project was conceived to meet the protection needs of the South Sudanese refugee children with a disability, along with host community children, residing in the area. I spent time listening to families who had not only lived through the trauma of war in South Sudan but also the challenges of caring for a disabled child. For the first time in Adjumani these children, will now have access to quality inclusive education facilities. In addition to a 5 minute video, I created content for Finn Church Aid’s social media campaign including 4x 60 sec videos in English, Swedish and Finnish, posters with messaging on Education in Emergencies, along with a feature story about the organization’s work in Adjumani for their annual magazine.
From 2011 to 2014, I worked as the Multimedia Producer for The Fred Hollows Foundation (FHF) – an Australian eye health NGO. The FHF is a leading not-for-profit organization with a mission to end avoidable blindness in the developing world (www.hollows.org). My work involved extensive travel to East Africa, South Asia and South East Asia to collect patient stories and create video and photo content to promote the Foundation’s sight saving work. Working closely with the Marketing and Fundraising Team I was responsible for producing video and photo content for donor appeals, ‘Thank you’ videos for the Foundation’s donors, video and photo content for internal and external stakeholders and advocacy videos. I led all aspects of production including conception, execution and delivery. My video work has since been used extensively online and in television. It continues to be used as a vital fundraising tool for the Foundation, Australia’s fastest growing NGO.
Towards the end of 2014 I moved to Timor-Leste where I took up a position supporting a local production company in documentary development and production. Casa de Produção Audiovisual plays an important role in Asia’s youngest nation, promoting peace and giving voice to marginalized communities and particularly youth, through storytelling. My role involved guiding the local team through the production of a national television program called ‘Dalan Ba Futuru’, or ‘Road to the Future’. This highly popular program provides a snapshot of each of the 13 districts of Timor-Leste, highlighting the concerns of Timorese people and at the same time promoting peace, and Timorese culture.
Further to this, I am an accomplished photographer with over ten years experience. Photographs from my work with The Fred Hollows Foundation have appeared in Australian and international media including international advocacy campaigns (such as Vision 2020) and on the walls of high profile exhibitions in Sydney. A series on East Timorese youth was published by The Guardian online, while another photo series here in Kampala, “The Blind Boxer of Naguru, was picked up by Agence France Presse (AFP) in 2016.
